Luis Planas: The Government promotes sustainable and efficient irrigation with a new public-private investment of 745 million euros

• With a public contribution of 543 million euros, the Minister points out that these investments are key to irrigation and modern agriculture, but also to guarantee the future of the rural environment • The Minister appreciates the involvement of the irrigation communities, which will contribute more than 202.57 million euros, an example of good collaboration between administration and irrigation • Advocates for the need for sustainable and efficient irrigation to respond to the double challenge of increasing food production for a growing population and tackling climate change

November 30, 2023.- The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Planas, has reiterated today that the modernization of irrigation will once again have a preferential character in the agrarian policy of the Government in the new legislature, because sustainable irrigation is the basis of the present and future of agricultural productions. The ministry and the State Mercantile Society of Agrarian Infrastructures (Seiasa) have today initialled three collaboration agreements that will involve mobilizing a public-private investment of 745.40 million euros in 11 autonomous communities.

Planas has stressed that these investments are key to promoting sustainable, efficient and modern irrigation, which is a fundamental pillar of the Spanish agri-food system, but also to guarantee the future of the rural environment.

He recalled that the ministry is immersed in the most ambitious volume of investment in irrigation modernization in history, with a volume that will exceed 2,344 million euros between 2022 and 2027. This means a threefold increase in the average annual investment over the last two decades. In total, the irrigation of 700,000 hectares of crops will be modernized and will benefit some 20,000 farmers. These investments are complemented by the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge’s projected works of up to 5 billion euros.

CONVENTIONS

Two of the three agreements signed by the minister and the president of Seiasa, Francisco Rodríguez Mulero, are framed in the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR), and are therefore financed by European Next Generation funds.

The first of these is an addendum to the second phase of the plan for improving efficiency and sustainability in irrigation of the PRTR that will mobilize an investment of 259.69 million euros, of which 207.75 million will be contributed from public funds and 51.94 million by the irrigation communities. This package includes nine new performances (two in Andalusia, in Castilla y León and in Extremadura and one in Aragón, Comunidad Valenciana and Region of Murcia) and the completion of another 6 of integral modernization (Andalusia, Aragón, Catalonia, La Rioja, Region of Murcia and Canary Islands).

The second agreement will allow the implementation of the third phase of the irrigation modernization plan of the PRTR, which is endowed with 371.43 million euros to finance new actions. The state contribution amounts to 260 million euros, while the users of the risks will invest 111.43 million. The projects to be implemented in this third phase are located in the autonomous communities of Andalusia (4), Aragon (4), Castilla y León (2) and Catalonia (2).

The third agreement signed is an addendum to the agreement to undertake modernization and consolidation works of irrigation declared of general interest, which are financed with regular funds of the ministry (60 million) and are co-financed by the European Agrarian Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) for 15.10 million euros and by the irrigation communities (39.2 million). The minister stressed that this funding from EU funds and the inclusion of the programme in the Strategic Plan of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) demonstrates the EU's support for the modernisation of irrigation.

The total investment contemplated in this addendum is 114.28 million euros, of which 99.28 million correspond to new actions and 15 to an infrastructure repair plan already executed. The six new performances are located in Andalusia (2), Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla y León, Extremadura and La Rioja.

The signing ceremony was attended by representatives of the National Federation of Irrigating Communities (Fenacore) and 34 communities involved in the planned actions, whom the minister thanked for their efforts to participate in this ambitious investment program, which has set as a good example of public-private collaboration.

THE CHALLENGE OF SUSTAINABILITY

The minister recalled the importance of irrigation in the agricultural production system of Spain, which in 2022 had a irrigated area of 3,771,000 hectares and, despite being only 23% of the total cultivated land, 65% of the total value of plant production is obtained. Thanks to irrigation systems, Planas stressed, the value of Spanish agricultural production has grown by 60% so far this century.

In addition to bringing greater profitability and productivity to food production, irrigation also implies important social benefits, since the production, transformation and marketing processes generate three times more jobs than those of rain-fed crops, which favors the establishment of population in rural areas and territorial balance.

The minister has stressed that sustainable irrigation is absolutely essential to face the double challenge of providing sufficient food to a growing population with fewer natural water resources as a result of climate change. Therefore, the commitment to modernization promoted by the ministry includes an improvement in water efficiency. The projected works will save at least 10% on the volume of water currently used, but there will also be better use with precision systems and the incorporation of new technologies. The minister recalled that 56% of the irrigation is already carried out by the drip system, which is more efficient. The use of non-conventional waters, such as purified and desalinated waters, is also foreseen.